Nigeria’s daily petrol imports fell by 30.1% to 10.2 million litres in September 2026, even as consumption elevated to 44.4 million litres per day.
This is in accordance to the most recent factsheet launched by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
According to the regulator, the mixed daily receipts fell to 38.7 million litres, leaving a shortfall of 5.7 million litres in opposition to reported consumption.
Petrol provide falls in need of demand
Domestic petrol receipts declined by 20.6% from 35.9 million litres per day in August to 28.5 million litres in September, whereas imports dropped from 14.6 million litres to 10.2 million litres daily. The reductions coincided with a 7% improve in consumption from 41.5 million litres per day in August.
Total receipts coated roughly 87.2% of reported consumption in September. Petrol inventory cowl improved from 22.9 days to 23.9 days over the identical interval however remained under the regulator’s 30-day benchmark.
The figures point out that decrease imports had been accompanied by weaker home provide, limiting the quantity of petrol accessible to meet rising demand.
Imports fluctuate all through 2026
Daily petrol imports diversified significantly between January and September, falling from 24.8 million litres in January to 3.0 million litres in February. Receipts recovered to 5.9 million litres in March, declined to 3.7 million litres in April and rose to 5.9 million litres in May.
Imports then climbed to 18.1 million litres per day in June and peaked at 19.7 million litres in July earlier than declining over the next two months. September’s import quantity was 48.2% under July’s peak.
Domestic provides adopted a special sample, rising from 40.1 million litres per day in January to a excessive of 41.5 million litres in May. Receipts subsequently fell to 32.5 million litres in June and 25.8 million litres in July earlier than recovering in August and declining once more in September.
Refining capability and import prices
Nairametrics reported that Nigeria’s petrol import invoice elevated by 989.4% quarter-on-quarter to N952.15 billion within the second quarter of 2026, from N87.40 billion in the first quarter.
- During the second quarter, the nation’s oil refining sector recorded year-on-year development of 43.94%, in accordance to an earlier Nairametrics report.
- The Dangote refinery’s crude oil distillation capability elevated from 650,000 barrels per day to 700,000 barrels per day following upkeep and growth work accomplished in February 2026.
- Despite this growth, September’s figures present that reported home receipts had been inadequate to cowl petrol consumption. Reducing import dependence would require home refineries to ship constant volumes whereas guaranteeing satisfactory provide to meet demand.
Nairametrics earlier reported that Nigeria’s petrol import bill fell to $10 billion in 2025, down from $14.06 billion in 2024.
In 2024, import prices spiked 105.3% to N15.42 trillion, the best on document, largely pushed by a 40.9% depreciation of the naira, which sharply inflated local-currency import prices.
